Thread: Moving in without hot water or heating

New house, one sold off by the Royal Air Force, and has been vacant for 3 years.. The inside is in good condition, and I have repaired three leaky pipes and so far can find no other leaks inside the house. Outside, now that is another matter. Anyone a plumber?

We've got a cold water tank that just won't stay full, empties itself slowly through a pipe that is for draining it, but I can't find where the cutoff is. It feeds the hot water tank, and who knows what else. Oh, the gas boiler won't light, and even when I think it is full, the hot water doesn't come out the taps. Shower no longer leaks but I don't even know if it is getting water, so no baths or showers. Lovely.

We have electricity though, and that at least is a start.

No water is one of the things that reminds me to praise progress and my shower, one of very few things I prefer not to live without. We lose our electricity at least once every winter and have a well, so no electricity, no water. I hate it.
In this instance, I would hire a plumber and fast. One gets irritable not being able to flush, and that plus grungy is no picnic.
Best of luck and speed in your endeavor for agua.

It's not no water, it's no hot water. We've got plenty of cold running water and flushy toilets and a shower that may or may not work. We used to have too much running cold water but I fixed that. I just hope there are no split pipes in the floor voids or behind walls.

Dude that totally sucks. My sympathies are with you. At least you have a way to heat water for a bath, so it's not a total disaster. During my poverty-stricken times I will often leave a large kettle (of water) simmering on the stove in case I need hot water for dishes or whatever--your house plants will also like it, since it significantly increases the humidity in the house.... er... although from reading your post it appears that you live in the UK, so perhaps humidity is not a problem for you as it is for us who live in the arid state of Colorado. Anyway, I googled "malfunctioning hot water heater" and got "about" 143,000 results. Yes, a lot of it is poorly written and unhelpful, but in all that dross you might be able to find some real help.

With my first house purchase swiftly came another expense of $3000 (USD) to replace bad plumbing that not even the most well-informed and adroit do-it-yourself-er could have have got going. Ah, the joys of home ownership.

Good luck to you!

Originally Posted by Richard Smith

It's not no water, it's no hot water. We've got plenty of cold running water and flushy toilets and a shower that may or may not work. We used to have too much running cold water but I fixed that. I just hope there are no split pipes in the floor voids or behind walls.

Oh, I thought the cold was draining out too quick to be useful. At any rate, sorry about the heat too.

Mate, I thought I had problems, with a few recalcitrant skirting boards. You've made my day.